Death and Madness 2

The battle begins and Percy's mom is hot

"Got your message. Is it too late to join the party?" Nico grinned. I could feel his pulse under my fingertips. It fluttered like a butterfly.

"Son of Hades. Daughter of Dionysus" Kronos spit on the ground.

"Child" I corrected. "I prefer gender neutral adjectives to describe me. Any problem? Because the last transphobe I met, I stabbed. And I'd happily do the same to you- Kronos"

Kronos sneered, "Child of Dionysus, do you love death so much you wish to experience it?"

"Your death," Nico said, "would be great for us."

"I'm immortal, you fools! I have escaped Tartarus. You have no business here, and no chance to live."

Nico slipped his fingers out of mine and drew his sword—three feet of wicked sharp Stygian iron, black as a nightmare. I pulled out my daggers and gave Kronos my signature fuck-you grin.

"Um... nah" I shrugged. "We don't agree"

The ground rumbled. Cracks appeared in the road, the sidewalks, the sides of the buildings. Skeletal hands grasped the air as the dead clawed their way into the world of the living. Vines snaked across the pavement, through the legs of the monsters, joining the skeletons halfway.

Death and Madness combined, a freakshow of an army- skeletal warriors merged with flowering vines. It looked like a scene out of an apocalyptic movie, where nature had taken over man. The warriors- weak on their own since they were just bones held together by magic, fortified with vines should hypothetically cause more damage and last longer.

Nico and I came up with the idea while Charon ferried us to the overworld and hummed along to some Taylor Swift song.

As the skeletal-vine freakshow continued, the Titan's monsters got jumpy and started to back up.

"HOLD YOUR GROUND!" Kronos demanded. "The dead are no match for us."

The sky turned dark and cold. Shadows thickened. A harsh war horn sounded, and as the dead soldiers formed up ranks with their guns and swords and spears, an enormous chariot roared down Fifth Avenue. It came to a stop next to us.

The horses were living shadows, fashioned from darkness. The chariot was inlaid with obsidian and gold, decorated with scenes of painful death. Holding the reins was Hades himself, Lord of the Dead, with Demeter and Persephone riding behind him.

Hades wore black armor and a cloak the color of fresh blood. On top of his pale head was the helm of darkness: a crown that radiated pure terror. It changed shape as I watched—from a dragon's head to a circle of black flames to a wreath of human bones. But that wasn't the scary part. The helm reached into my mind and ignited my worst nightmares, my most secret fears. I wanted to crawl into a hole and hide, and I could tell the enemy army felt the same way. Only Kronos's power and authority kept his ranks from fleeing.

Hades smiled coldly. "Hello, Father. You're looking. . . young."

"Hades," Kronos growled. "I hope you and the ladies have come to pledge your allegiance."

"I'm afraid not." Hades sighed. "My son and his uh... best friend here convinced me that perhaps I should prioritize my list of enemies." He glanced at me as if he didn't believe we were just friends. Then he looked at Percy with distaste "As much as I dislike certain upstart demigods, it would not do for Olympus to fall. I would miss bickering with my siblings. And if there is one thing we agree on—it is that you were a TERRIBLE father."

"True," muttered Demeter. "No appreciation of agriculture."

"Mother!" Persephone complained.

Hades drew his sword, a double-edged Stygian blade etched with silver. "Now fight me! For today the House of Hades will be called the saviors of Olympus."